Monday, February 23, 2009

Point A to Point B to Point C to Point D to Point.............





I looked at my speedometer today and realized I put on nearly 100 miles on my car over the last 30 hours or so zipping around Colorado Springs photographing this and that.
Question. 
"What is your day like?"  I get asked that question or something similar at least once a week.  My response is usually "I never know what I'll be doing from day to day."
It's true. 
 Unless I get a phone call from an editor in advance or an assignment down the road I really have no clue what is in store for me from day to day. 
Example.
Yesterday I photographed a morning softball game followed by a a bridal fair in downtown Colorado Springs.  I then rushed to make my way to the airport for another return from Iraq homecoming.  Luckily that one was called off.  After that I photographed our high school athlete of the week.
On Monday it was a phone call from my editor Dave Turner who sent me on a house fire run minutes before I was going to make it to work to check my schedule for the day.  A 180 degree turnaround from that emotional scene and I was on my way to photograph a burger joint for a restaurant review.  An hour before that it was a school board meeting that, thankfully, was canceled.  And then back to the office to edit and listen to the police scanner and wait for the next potential disaster.
Do you get the picture?  I'm all over the place.  And this is what makes being a photojournalist a very interesting profession.  
I heard an old joke once, probably told a hundred times, by an grumpy old photojournalist once who shall remain nameless.  
He said,  "If you ever hear a photographer bitching it's because he doesn't want you to know how great of a job he really has."
That's the truth, brother.

1 comment:

Joshua Buck said...

I hope you at least grabbed a Five Guys burger.